Properties of thermotropic liquid crystals induced by hydrogen bonding between pyridyl-1,2,4-oxadiazole derivatives and benzoic acid, 4-chlorobenzoic acid or 4-methylbenzoic acid

Supramolecular liquid crystalline complexes have been obtained from binary mixtures of 3-(4-pyridyl)-5-(4-n-alkoxy)phenyl-1,2,4-oxadiazoles with benzoic acid, 4-chlorobenzoic acid or 4-methylbenzoic acid. Neither the oxadiazole derivatives nor the carboxylic acids are mesomorphic, but the H-bonded complexes are. Their liquid crystalline properties were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry, polarizing optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction.